Eric Cantor and the Capitol Building

Cantor’s loss: The Jewish factor

  Eric Cantor, the House of Representatives’ majority leader and only Jewish Republican, has officially been buried. One day after a stunning loss to Tea Party challenger Dave Brat--who ran an aggressive campaign vowing for free-market change and denouncing Congress's bipartisan budget deal--the high-potential politician announced that he would resign his leadership post. Pundits and policy makers have wasted no time shoveling in the dirt, offering myriad explanations for the inevitability of Cantor's fall from grace (despite nobody having predicted it beforehand). Many have homed in on one component of Cantor's demise: the Jewish factor. The New York Times argued that Cantor's Jewishness had become a liability: David Wasserman, a House political analyst at the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, said another, more local factor has to be acknowledged: Mr. Cantor, who dreamed of becoming the first Jewish speaker of the House, was culturally out of step...

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Have you checked out Moment's March/April issue?

It's on newsstands now! Check out our cover story on Bernie Madoff, the man who ran what was perhaps one of history’s largest Ponzi schemes, remains a mystery. Rabbis representing the spectrum of Jewish belief reflect on what ethical lessons we can learn from the scandal, and Charles Ponzi biographer Mitchell Zuckoff discusses why Madoff targeted Jewish charities and how ethnicity has factored into the media coverage of the affair. Also in this issue, we profile minority whip Eric Cantor. He made headlines by persuading his Republican colleagues not to vote for the stimulus package. Is this highest-ranking Jew in the history of the House, and its only Jewish Republican, the Moses who will lead the GOP out of the wilderness to the Promised Land? Former Wall Street Journal reporter Robert S. Greenberger profiles the 45-year-old...

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Waxman and Cohen Move Up: US Congress Jewish Update

By Benjamin Schuman-Stoler In the aftermath of the election and an entirely new incoming administration, the Republican and Democratic parties have shuffled their rosters to prepare for the next Congress. As a result, some Jewish members have been promoted and now hold top positions. This week, representatives Eric Cantor (R-Va.) and Henry Waxman (D-Cal.) got significant promotions in their parties' and Congress' hierarchy. On Wednesday, Rep. Cantor (see above video) was unanimously elected House minority whip by his fellow Republicans. The Jerusalem Post and Ha'aretz both had pieces about Cantor and the GOP's post-election efforts this week. Ha'aretz had this quote: "As a rising star in the Republican party and an outstanding legislator, Rep. Cantor is a source of tremendous pride for the Jewish community," Republican Jewish Coalition official Matt Brooks said. "While the many challenges facing this country,...

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